September 20, 2018

The Pull List: 1 August 2018, Part 2

Journalist Jacqueline McGee is on the hunt for a story: the apparent resurrection of Dr Bruce Banner, aka the Incredible Hulk. Joining her on her assignment this issue is Walter Langkowski, better known by his own alter-ego Sasquatch and also Banner's former college roommate.

We're now four issues into The Immortal Hulk. The first three issues have had an almost anthology-esque structure to them, with each story using a darker, more threatening version of the character to tell horror stories. This issue feels like a much more conventional superhero comic, firming up an ongoing narrative and reconnecting Banner and the Hulk back into the Marvel Universe. It is a perfectly solid approach, but I do hope writer Al Ewing can strike a balance between the horror stories and the superhero ones. The first three issues were just too good to lose. Joe Bennett provides excellent illustrations with inker Ruy Jose. (3/5)

The Immortal Hulk #4. Marvel. Written by Al Ewing. Art by Joe Bennett and Ruy Jose. Colours by Paul Mounts.

Under the cut: reviews of Doctor Who: The Seventh Doctor, Giant Days, and Green Arrow.


Doctor Who: The Seventh Doctor #3
Titan Comics. Written by Andrew Cartmel. Art by Christopher Jones. Colours by Marko Lesko. Backup written by Richard Dinnick. Art by Jessica Martin. Colours by Charlie Kirchoff.
The world is in danger from an alien-triggered holocaust and it's down to the Doctor, Ace, and the Intrusions Counter-Measures Group to save the day. This has been an entertaining three-part romp, and an absolute gem for nostalgic fans of the late 1980s, and Sylvester McCoy's three-year tenure as the Doctor. Christopher Jones is the perfect artist for this sort of comic book: he has a gift for depicting real-life actors in their television roles, and without making things look overly photo-referenced or stiff. The backup strip by Richard Dinnick goes out on a higher note than earlier issues, particularly when it comes to Jessica Martin's artwork. (Enjoy the alternative cover too: which is based around TV serial "The Happiness Patrol" for some reason.) (4/5)


Giant Days #41
Boom Studios. Written by John Allison. Art by Max Sarin. Colours by Whitney Cogar.
Daisy's life in thrown back into disarray when her German ex-girlfriend Ingrid burst back on the scene. Can she resist her charms a second time? Plus there's a Halloween party fast approaching, and insufficient time to find a costume. After more than 40 issues, Giant Days now just seems like a warm and comforting blanket of a comic: loveable characters, a bit of soap opera drama, and plenty of snappy dialogue and comedy. It's pretty much the most consistent and reliable comic book out there. (4/5)


Green Arrow #43
DC Comics. Written by Julie Benson and Shawna Benson. Art by Javier Fernandez. Colours by John Kalisz.
While Green Arrow tries to connect better with Arsenal and Black Canary, a new vigilante named "the Citizen" begins stalking the city's rich and immoral to teach a permanent lesson. This is a fairly good DC superhero issue: neither awful nor brilliant, but breezily entertaining in a pleasing but unmemorable fashion. It's what should count as the average for superhero books, but of course it never is. At the moment this storyline seems a bit overly familiar. I'm keen to see if it breaks into a more interesting and original direction next month. (3/5)


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